"Attention to the crew of the weapons department, a service inspection will take place in two hours. It is forbidden to carry any personal assistant robots. Personal belongings and room cleanliness must be arranged by hand. Non-compliant crew members will be subject to punishment."
Cui Zhihao and Klei's ears rang with this announcement. Annoyed, Klei tossed his military cap onto his bed and said, "What the hell, a simple weapons officer acting like he's holding the imperial sword. That guy from the Neon Country is said to be tough to deal with."
"Do you also know this Amamiya Takafumi?" asked Cui Zhihao to Klei.
Klei replied with displeasure, "Of course, I've met the guy when I was an intern. Back then, he was appointed as the deputy captain of the New Orleans escort ship, heard he was a big shot at the military academy. But this guy is extremely unfriendly to us soldiers. Not only does he always give us extra work, but he also punishes soldiers arbitrarily. A few of my internship comrades went to appeal, only to be rejected."
Cui Zhihao nodded, "Pretty much in line with what I've heard. Amamiya Takafumi is a former Self-Defense Officer of the Neon Country who thought the Self-Defense Forces were very unsatisfactory. Even after being entreated by many leaders to stay, he retired. After the Star Alliance began conscription, he entered the Star Alliance Universe Army Military Academy for officer training, and he was among the top students. If he hadn't come to Aquarius, he probably could have been the captain of an escort ship by now."
The ranks and positions in the Universe Army are clearly separated. The captains of main battle ships like Aquarius hold the rank of colonel, captains of cruisers are lieutenant colonels, destroyers are commanded by majors, and the rank of a captain of an escort ship only goes up to captain. The new officers trained by the Universe Army are generally associated with their final assessment grades. If they have previous service experience and ranks, there might be some additional benefits, but it's not absolute.
On a large main battle ship like the Aquarius, the captain, deputy captain, and squadron leader hold the rank of colonel, while heads of other departments range from lieutenant colonel to colonel. Amamiya Takafumi had already reached the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Self-Defense Forces and after retiring, joined the Universe Army. With outstanding assessment results and the Universe Army in need of personnel, he was promoted to colonel.
Klei chuckled, "Who cares, it's not messy here anyway. I'm going to check the supermarket for some spicy strips."
Cui Zhihao said, "Hurry back, sorting out personal belongings will take some time."
About two hours later, Amamiya, the weapons officer, began inspecting every cabin assigned to the weapons department. On a main battle ship like an aircraft carrier, the weapons department has fewer people compared to a battleship or a battleship cruiser, with the largest department being the air crew. Aquarius also possesses main battle ship-level firepower but in smaller quantity, supplemented by a greater number of medium and small self-defense weapons.
Cui Zhihao operated the 15WM anti-aircraft electromagnetic cannon aboard the aircraft carrier. Although the warship's combat system could manage weapons collectively and select targets for attacks, human intervention was often indispensable.
Cui Zhihao and Klei stood straight, eyes fixed forward. Several months of military training had turned Cui Zhihao, who had been a spoilt young master, into a real soldier.
Amamiya was tall and lean, his hair black and soft with a bit of natural curl. Upon entering the cabin, he respectfully took off his military cap revealing his hair, in keeping with Iridium Star tradition that also spread within the Star Alliance. An officer should remove his hat as a sign of respect when entering a subordinate's personal space.
Amamiya had a stubble on his chin, and his eyes seemed to carry a world-weary wisdom. He glanced briefly at the cabin. Universe Army cabins have no real bedding. Cabin temperature is automatically regulated; besides, the adjustable mattresses with ergonomic and automatic adjustment features are very soft, ensuring a more solid sleep. The bed also has up to 36 temperature control ports, creating an "invisible blanket" to ensure warmth and comfort during sleep.
Amamiya approached the locker and opened it, and a flood of spicy strips spilled out with a clatter. The surface of the cabin looked very tidy, exactly how Cui Zhihao and Klei found it upon their arrival. Klei had no habit of organizing his belongings, so he had stuffed everything into the locker without any order, not to mention the large quantity of spicy strips which made the locker bulge.
"Sergeant Klei, is this how you organize your quarters?"
Klei, feeling somewhat nervous, stood to attention and shouted, "Yes, sir!"
Amamiya said, "Unqualified, starting today you'll replace the cleaning robots and wipe the dining hall for a week."
Klei didn't dare to argue and could only reply, "Yes, sir."
As Amamiya turned to leave, passing by Cui Zhihao, he added, "Corporal Cui Zhihao, you failed to supervise your comrades, same punishment."
Cui Zhihao's brows furrowed involuntarily, and he said loudly, "Report, please clarify the basis for the punishment, sir."
The Universe Army is a military organization with stringent and meticulous regulations, and any punishment meted out by superiors must be based on law, with every disciplinary measure clearly defined in military regulations. Cui Zhihao had studied the military regulations well and had never seen an instance where he would be punished for his roommate's infractions.
Amamiya turned back, facing him, his expression somewhat stern, "What I say is your basis for punishment."
Cui Zhihao felt a sense of injustice, but still stood upright with great propriety, saying, "Sir, I will appeal to the higher-ups."
Amamiya stopped looking at him, took steps to leave the sleeping quarters, and said, "You have the right to do so, but until the military court overturns my judgment, you'll still need to accept my punishment."
Amamiya didn't stop walking and simply left.
After the Weapons Officer left, Klei came over apologetically to Cui Zhihao and said, "Ah man, I'm truly sorry, I got you into trouble too."
Cui Zhihao shook his head and said, "We share the hard times; it's nothing. It's just cleaning the dining hall."
Klei said resentfully, "That damn Neon jerk, treating every little thing like it's a direct order. Other departments don't have all this nonsense, but he always has to make trouble for us. Things like cleaning and tidying up are what robots are for, yet he insists we do it by hand. Just now, I saw a few of the guys from the engine department heading to the recreation room to play video games, I'm so envious."
Cui Zhihao actually didn't mind the work; he had always been a hardworking kid at home.
At this moment, he said to Klei, "Our ship will soon be redeployed to the Sirius Galaxy, and one tour of duty is half a year. Will you miss Earth?"
Klei replied, "Of course, I'll miss my mom. Haha, she used to be the leader of a Black civil rights movement organization in Brooklyn, but with the Star Alliance implementing new policies, I guess she'll be out of a job soon too. I wonder when New York will be as developed as Spratly Island, at least people wouldn't need to work for money then. We could just grab as many spicy strips as we want, just like us."
While saying this, he tore open a pack of the very thing that had gotten him punished and started munching contentedly.